Grassroots Women's Approach to Capacity Building "....it is important to learn from external knowledge but the critical task is to understand the application of any knowledge within our specific context." ( Malatiben Chaudhari ) Notes Indigenous knowledge context of a Malatiben Chaudhari's narrative grassroots woman innovator I am a woman farmer and livestock alatiben Chaudhari is a female farmer keeper. I always feel the urge to do in Gujarat, India who has struggled something new despite difficult cir- with her life in a challenging rural en- cumstances. I was born in a Prajapati KI vironment and disenfranchised commu- family (a marginal caste group) in a nity. In the face of these constraints, poor rural community in Gujarat, India. she has built and improved indigenous As a child, I observed a local teacher capacity to create efficient who used to walk to the Harijan (Dalit) M and profitable livestock en- community every evening to conduct terprises, and supported sus- adult education classes. After a while, I http://www.worldbank.org/afr/ik/default.htm tainable development in her gathered the courage to ask him community and beyond. whether I could also attend classes. Through her innovations, Malatiben These were my early lessons in `lit- has successfully transformed the eco- eracy'. We had no school or classroom nomic activities of an agriculturally de- materials. We all wrote with a stick in pressed region in the Mehasana district the sand. I managed to study up to the of Gujarat. Over the years, she has suc- 4th standard and then had to drop out cessfully built a thriving farm and live- because the high school was too far stock enterprise. away. In those days, not many girls No. 58 Malatiben Chaudhri's narrative sum- could continue their education beyond July 2003 mary presented here highlights two as- the primary school. pects of indigenous knowledge: IK Notes reports periodically on · Understanding by local community Indigenous Knowledge (IK) initiatives members of specific needs and their in Sub-Saharan Africa and occasionally ability to find unique and sustainable on such initiatives outside the Region. It is published by the Africa Region's solutions to seasonal and long-term Knowledge and Learning Center as problems; and part of an evolving IK partnership between the World Bank, communi- · The ability of grassroots women to ties, NGOs, development institutions overcome constraints and build ca- and multilateral organizations. The views expressed in this article are World Bank pacity within their communities and those of the authors and should not be regions attributed to the World Bank Group or its partners in this initiative. A webpage on IK is available at // www.worldbank.org/afr/ik/ default.htm 2 My husband belongs to a Chaudhari caste family. Its social mainly for farm work. They concentrated on agriculture and status is higher than the status of my family. After marriage not on livestock rearing and milk production as a source of the family gave us a small room in their home in the village. income. Buffaloes and young calves were not given proper My husband's family did not own agricultural land and did not care. The livestock was always kept in crowded and unclean earn much. We tried to start a small grocery shop but failed. spaces. The young calves were given left-over fodder and re- I was not happy and wanted a profession of my own that ceived poor quality care. It took 6-7 years for the buffaloes would make me proud of my work. Because of my parents' and cows to produce milk. The average milk production per background as poor prajapati (pot makers), my husband's buffalo was 2-3 liters a day. It was clear that people in the family never fully accepted me and considered me not ca- region were wasting their money on the livestock. It was too pable of thinking on my own. My Sasri and the gam (in-laws much of a burden for the women to manage agricultural ac- family and village community) considered me ill-equipped tivities, children, household work and livestock husbandry. for land ownership or farming. I had to face humiliations ev- ery day. They told me in many ways that my knowledge was I thought that it should be possible to grow local fodder in not valuable and that I did not posses `Avadat' (worthy the poor quality soil. Why not try livestock management and skills). earn money through selling milk? I was convinced that if we I remained silent for a long time but continued to observe focused on livestock husbandry, the animals should produce the village situation. Almost all families produced a monoc- milk within 2-3 years and we would save 4-5 extra years' ex- ulture cash crop Bajara (Pennisetum glaucum, Pearl Millet). penses and efforts. The challenge was to achieve it all: no Poor land quality and continuous droughts prevented viable pesticides, utilization of local resources, high quality care for or profitable commercial farming. People kept livestock the livestock, manageable workload, improved overall milk production and incomes and community recognition of my knowledge. No one believed me. So it was important to IK Notes demonstrate the new approach to the entire village. Kudarati Niyam and scientific approach (natural logic and would be of interest to: systematic efforts) The way our children require nutritious food and constant Name care, calves also need special care. So in 1970, I decided to try out dairy livestock. I was determined to prove that I had Institution the knowledge and the capacity to perform difficult tasks on my own. No one gives an opportunity to a woman...we have Address to find one and pursue it. Initially I borrowed money and bought two calves for Rs. 40 in the local market. I looked after them day and night like my children. I thought carefully about the daily needs of the buffaloes and young calves, such as dry and green fodder re- Letters, comments, and requests for publications quirements, health problems and home remedies, continu- should be addressed to: ous water supply, clean environment, pregnancy cycle and Editor: IK Notes other seasonal needs. My own family members and the vil- Knowledge and Learning Center lage people ridiculed me to remind me that I did not have Africa Region, World Bank the required skills and knowledge to manage the livestock 1818 H Street, N.W., Room J5-055 Washington, D.C. 20433 and that I was crazy to look after the livestock as my chil- E-mail: pmohan@worldbank.org dren. Yet, I was determined to work hard and learn more de- spite the lack of encouragement from my own family and community. I needed the milk money to support my family. 3 I always wanted to understand the `science' of livestock High-quality care management and at the same time rely on my Kotha Suz People in the village were shocked when my buffaloes pro- (context-specific knowledge and intuition). Kotha Suz is not duced a total of 17.3 liters milk per day for the first time. exclusive like formal schooling and expert knowledge -- This was double the average of milk produced by other ani- even illiterate and poor women have it and use it. My mother mals in the village. Soon the livestock management experts, taught me about taking care of animals. She had found home- agriculture scientists and government veterinarians came to made and quickly available remedies from the household or see my small farm and innovative practices. Both buffalos the nearby forest for treating livestock. I have also learned won awards in the local livestock and regional milk quality -- and continue to learn -- a lot by observing ecological and contest. For the first time in my life, I won Rs. 25 ( approxi- economic changes within my village. mately US$0.50 at present rates) and Rs. 200 as a reward in I always believed that Chila per chalava karata chilo padvo various contests. Finally my hard work had paid off and some- vadhare agatyano che (it is more significant to set a trend one had recognized my efforts. My knowledge had become rather than follow it). I agree that it is important to learn valuable. from external knowledge but the critical task is to under- Once my livestock enterprise got stabilized and I could stand the application of any knowledge within our specific hire more help, I began to focus even more on the special context. It is also important to focus on innovation process needs of my animals rather than on increased milk produc- and optimize it in order to facilitate a broader impact at the tion alone. The question I asked myself was "If I feel the regional and national level. need to drink water anytime, animals probably feel the same way". So I installed a continuous water supply system for drink- Planning a locally successful enterprise: key principles and ing and insisted on keeping the animals and stable clean. values At present, five workers look after the stable day and The critical aspects in livestock keeping are: knowledge of night. All animals are given baths three times a day. I make the daily care process; knowledge of available fodder mate- sure they do not get ticks. A clean environment and not rial; continuous learning about innovative livestock hus- medication prevents ticks. Residual fodder from the trough bandry practices. From the beginning I have focused on an is removed immediately to maintain a clean stable. The integrated farming and livestock management approach. young calves, buffaloes and cows receive fresh fodder mix Utilization of agricultural waste: I observed that many resi- according to their age, size and weight. All workers ensure dues of dried Bajara (Pennisetum glaucum, Pearl Millet) were that fodder is not mixed up with droppings. Many other farm- left behind after harvest in the fields. I tried to mix the resi- ers do not pay attention to these details. Most male farmers dues with fodder grasses and created a special ration for my own 4­6 animals and use family labor (mainly women) to livestock. This has become a highly nutritious fodder formula manage their livestock. It is very difficult for a woman to used by other farmers and communities in the region. The take care of so many animals, given the household, family mix is always prepared especially for the animals depending and farm responsibilities. It is so important to have a small upon their health, weight, height, size and current condi- number of livestock that is manageable for the women in the tion. A special mix of several local ingredients including family. green and dry fodder, crop residues, government recom- mended nutritious feed additives and other secret home- Knowledge sharing and learning made ingredients such as Jaggery (unrefined brown I also believe that specialists in the field and professional sugar)are mixed to prepare a local feed. I am strongly against institutions must test local experiments and new knowledge. the use of chemicals and artificial ingredients in farming and I attend local and national innovation-related workshops and livestock management. The total milk production per buffalo/ livestock management related events. I always interact with cow in my stable is 2-3 times higher than the average in the government and foreign veterinarians, agricultural scientists region. and other dairy-management experts during their visit to the 4 area and during a village level meeting or a workshop. Grassroots women's participation and asset ownership Women are not supposed to attend these kinds of institu- Today I own two buffalos and nineteen cows (Sankar Gai -- tional gatherings but I make it a point to participate. I am the local breed). My livestock averages 10­12 liters of milk trying to convince other women in my village to do the same per animal per day, which is more than double the average in -- but it is not easy. It is so important for rural women to the region. I am earning well and live a comfortable life. The have access to institutions of knowledge and external net- Mehsana Dudh Sagar dairy in the village has computerized works. its functions and now we women can measure the fat percent- age in our milk and receive the appropriate price for the Regional impact milk. This way it is easier to keep track of daily production A few years ago, I heard about a specially prepared animal and monthly income. I have purchased land with this income, feed mix distributed by the AGRO Research Company and employed four full-time workers, renovated the house, in- the Doodh Sagar Dairy (Regional Milk Dairy Cooperative), stalled a bore-well in my farm and sent my son to the univer- which was not popular in the area. The animals did not like it sity. very much and therefore farmers did not buy it. I mixed the My status in the family and within the community has feed with the locally available fodder in a particular way and changed -- now I command respect and moral authority. Life animals started to eat this new, very nutritious feed. Now I is never easy for women, but they have to learn to struggle feel proud because farmers in the district are using the same despite difficult circumstances. I believe that `Mushkeli to feed by using my methods to increase milk production. I am Sanshodhanni Janamdata Che' (Hardship is the mother of in- happy to have set a trend. Company representatives visited novation). my farm and thanked me for developing the local version of My only fear is that the next generation expects quick re- their product. sults and forgets that details such as a clean stable or con- Many farmers in the area are now focusing on dairy keep- tinuous water supply are critical components of successful ing rather than farming. Initially, the women in the region livestock keeping. The younger generations have received observed my practice carefully and adopted them. The male formal education and do not respect `rural professions' or the farmers took some time to recognize the new approach. Now knowledge of the rural poor people. It is a tragedy that ac- we grow crops for subsistence purposes only and fodder for quiring formal education means the loss of Kotha Suz and milk production. Many farmers and communities in the re- Atmagyan (indigenous knowledge and wisdom). My only gion now rely on dairy keeping. We support the second larg- hope is that organizations like SRISTI, which recognize and est Milk Cooperative -- Mehsana Doodh Sagar Dairy -- in the support our efforts, will preserve innovative and sustainable region. indigenous practices. Narrative by Malatiben Chaudhry, Gujarat, India. Documentation, translation and adaptation to the IK Notes format by Preeti Shroff-Mehta, Washington, DC, USA. (prtshroff@aol.com) The narrative presented here is part of the doctoral research study prepared by Preeti Shroff-Mehta at the State Univer- sity of New York at Buffalo during 2000­2002. Prof. Anil Gupta at Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions (SRISTI), India,www.sristi.org, guided the field study in Gujarat and Tamilnadu states in India.